The 2010 power list of those with political influence in Hudson County reflects the disintegration of Jersey City as the foundation of the county Democratic Party. With arrests and indictments and the failure of the political establishment to infuse new blood into the party, any power list would be very different from years past.

The inept quality of leadership of the long-dominant organization has national implications, because without a shift of power to more functional areas of the county U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez becomes vulnerable. Menendez is alarmed at the weakening of his home base when a likely well-financed Republican challenge lies ahead.

Despite his staff's superficial responses that the senator is too involved in health care and national security to be concerned about local politics, Menendez is trying to fix the Hudson County machine. He wants No. 2A in this list to head up the HCDeadO.

Menendez's ability to send tremors through the county political landscape, his standing in the U.S. Senate, and his ability to bring home some very big slabs of bacon put him at No. 1.

Here are the rest of the "powerful."

2A. Union City Mayor and 33rd District Sen. Brian P. Stack's influence on the Senate Judiciary Committee is growing. He is expected to be a county icon for years. He has survived the HCDeadO's attempt to remove him from the Senate and he is a consummate political organizer who doesn't sleep.

2B. North Bergen Mayor and 32nd District Sen. Nick Sacco is an old guard politician who has managed to resist the "haven't-got-a-clue" virus that has infected other Democratic officials in the county. A pragmatist, Sacco has a working detente relationship with Stack in Hudson and Trenton. Along with No. 4, the trio could fill the void created by the Jersey City decay.

3. State 31st District Sen. Sandra B. Cunningham of Jersey City is in an unusual situation. Cunningham is strong in the Jersey City section of her district and the Bayonne administration has yet to prove it can get out the vote. What she really has going for her is a strong relationship with Republican Gov.-elect Chris Christie. It is a powerful talisman.

4. Bayonne Mayor Mark Smith is high on the list because of his relationship with Sacco through his father-in-law, No. 6. Smith could become the third member of a loose triumvirate that includes Stack and Sacco.

5. Jersey City Councilman Steven Fulop is laying down the inside track that he expects will take him to the Mayor's Office in 2013. He has played the reformer role well and has a strong core of followers. Some see him as the light of reason on the City Council. Time will eventually tell if it's real or just a flash.

6. North Bergen Corporation Counsel Herb Klitzner is like the movie "Predator." He is hard to see coming in the political jungle. The lawyer is Sacco's consultant in North Bergen, West New York and Guttenberg. Klitzner's one weakness, and strength, is that he has a very long memory.

7. Apparently former Bayonne Freeholder Neil Carroll has yet to retire from the Hudson County sport. Carroll is a close adviser to West New York Mayor Silverio Vega and has friendly ties to Sacco. Then there's no harm in having a son-in-law who is ranked No. 4. Neil has a wide sphere of influence.

8. Craig Guy and Harold "Bud" Demellier Jr. have played as a tandem in running political campaigns and operating as sandwich and pizza vendors for campaign works. Guy is the tireless street worker who finds much time to play politics while employed by the county. His nose is in everything. Demellier plays the strategist. They no doubt see a shift in the Democratic leadership as fatal to their earnings. If Menendez wants change, this pair may have to be put down.

9. Hudson County Executive Tom DeGise knows that he serves at the pleasure of the mayors and not all of them are happy with him. He still runs county government. Yet, if some mayors ask him to throw allies under the bus, tire tracks will become a fashion statement.

10. Weehawken Mayor Richard Turner is always trying to maintain a countywide positive karma. Turner is not happy unless there is political stability. As a key member of the state Local Finance Board, he has been useful to municipalities in need of fiscal direction.

11. U.S. Rep. Albio Sires of West New York is the county's congressman and he should be on the list. Although quiet, he still puts his name to legislation and announces federal funding for the 13th Congressional District. He still keeps his eye, and fingers, in his hometown.

12. Freeholder William O'Dea's stock has gone up a bit just by becoming vice chairman of the county Board of Freeholders. By tradition, the Jersey City politician will head the county governing body next year. Then there are those whispers that he would like DeGise's chair.

13. Joseph Panepinto, of Panepinto Properties, is a former chairman of the HCDeadO. He is probably Jersey City's biggest developer and first choice for major projects. Panepinto has been somewhat of a philanthropist and sponsor for many civic organizations in the city. He speaks, they listen.

14. Jersey City Councilman William Gaughan is the quarterback on the City Council who takes the snaps from the mayor to pass legislative measures. He also doubles as chief of staff to the county executive.

15. Jose Arango is ranked here by virtue of being chairman of the Hudson County Republican Party and his friendly relationship with the governor-elect.

16. Jersey City Councilman at large Peter Brennan, president of the City Council, has been thinking for himself of late. Brennan has criticized Councilman Mariano Vega for not stepping down as have others who were arrested in the federal corruption probe.

17. Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer and Councilman Michael Lenz are part of that city's reform administration. Lenz seems to be making the noise and Zimmer has been acting, well, mayoral. This administration's role in the county is out of focus, but they are Democrats in a rich city.

18. Jason O'Donnell, chairman of the Bayonne Democratic Organization, had a poor turnout in the November gubernatorial race. O'Donnell is still learning and he has Smith's support. Bayonne is too big to ignore.

19. Paul Swibinski, a major principal of Vision Media Marketing, is part of the Sacco stable, but he also has his hands in Hoboken. He worked for Councilwoman Beth Mason in her unsuccessful run for mayor and he is behind the Mike Novak resurrection for a possible First Ward council seat run. Swibinski plays golf with DeGise.

20. Mayor Jerramiah Healy's fall down the rankings came with the summer federal mass arrests of political figures on corruption charges, some of them associated with the Healy administration. The mayor was mentioned in a federal complaint and indictment. Although he has not been accused of any wrongdoing, he is politically toxic. Throw in the poor November voting results when he is the leader of the county Democrats and the fall is without a parachute.

21. Assembly members Joan Quigley, of Jersey City and the 32nd District, and Ruben Ramos, of Hoboken and the 33rd District, serve without fanfare. They also serve district mayors. Quigley is a survivor, but Ramos needs more terms to claim the same.

21A. Assembly members Vincent Prieto, of Secaucus and the 32nd District, and Caridad Rodriguez, of West New York and the 33rd District, for the same reasons as No. 22. Prieto is chairman of the Secaucus Democratic Party and Rodriguez is growing in Stack's district.

22B. West New York Mayor Silverio Vega is mayor of one the two most dense municipalities in the state. Should he survive a recall attempt, Vega can save resources for next year's municipal election. His position is boosted by having Neil Carroll as his confidant. His mistake was crossing No. 2A.

23. Hudson County Administrator Abraham Antun is one of the hardest-working public officials in the county and an invaluable asset. He often assists municipal officials on understanding how county measures may affect their communities. He is on this list for doing even more than what taxpayers expect.

24. Jersey City Board of Education Trustee Sean Connor is a constant campaigner. An outside possible alternative to Healy in 2013, Connor has blood ties to former Mayor Gerald McCann and he does have the respect of many senior citizens. A West Hudson politician could have made the mark in this slot but they have been quiet, subservient. We'll visit some of these folks across the meadowlands a little bit into the future.

25. Mark Albiez is an aide to the 33rd District state legislators. Head of staff for Stack's local Senate offices, Albiez is an invaluable right-hand man and knowledgeable liaison with Trenton. The media has discovered he can get answers.